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Chelsea star Bosingwa claims refereeing conspiracy as Norwegian official receives death threats over Barca row
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By Sportsmail Reporter
Last updated at 1:08 PM on 07th May 2009

Jose Bosingwa has claimed a refereeing 'conspiracy' caused Chelsea's acrimonious Champions League semi-final exit at the hands of Barcelona.

'It seems he was told to be against Chelsea,' the Blues defender claimed in an interview with Portuguese broadcaster RTP.

'I do not know if he is a referee or a thief. There are no words to describe the person that was on the pitch here.
Michael Ballack confronts Tom Henning Ovrebo after the referee dismisses a penalty claim

'The way he refereed the match was not the most correct one. He should never referee again. There is nothing to say about Barcelona's goal, but there were penalties that were not awarded.'

Barcelona struck a 93rd-minute equaliser at Stamford Bridge to go through to the final in Rome on away goals, but Chelsea's players were furious with the performance of Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo.

Chelsea had four separate claims for penalties turned down and Didier Drogba launched a foul-mouthed tirade at the official at the final whistle of the 1-1 draw.

He faces censure by UEFA, who will no doubt also be seeking explanation of Bosingwa's hint at a conspiracy against Chelsea and the call for Ovrebo to end his refereeing career.

The official was smuggled out of Britain under police guard this morning after a series of death threats.
Jose Bosingwa

At the end of the match Ovrebo was the victim of abuse from Chelsea players and was forced to run from the tunnel to seek refuge on the pitch.

Police were so concerned about his safety that they changed his hotel before organising his secret exit from Britain.

Police in Ovrebo’s home city of Oslo said they were investigating threats made on the internet, which has been flooded with messages including the referee’s address and warnings that fans will 'hunt him' and 'kill him'.

An Oslo police spokesman said: 'We are watching closely what is being posted on the internet. Anything we believe would threaten his personal safety will be taken seriously.'

Former international referee and Sportsmail columnist Graham Poll said: 'This morning he’s being smuggled out of our country under police escort — this is a referee of a football match. That is a disgrace.

'When he booked in a hotel they had to change the hotel he was staying at because of the fear that maybe fans would find him.'
Chelsea star Frank Lampard takes issue with referee Tom Henning Ovrebo

Poll blamed the players for stoking the fans’ anger. 'When you see players acting like that, fans are called fans because they are fanatics — they may feel it’s time to take action themselves,' he said.

He described Drogba and Ballack’s behaviour as 'a dreadful display of petulance', adding that stewards at Chelsea had failed to step in quickly enough to protect the referee. 'Players should show some restraint. They should show some respect.'

The campaign against Ovrebo has echoes of the case of Anders Frisk, a referee who faced a hate campaign after another Chelsea-Barcelona match.

Chelsea’s coach at the time, Jose Mourinho, accused him of 'adulterating' the outcome of a match. Frisk eventually quit as a referee.

Chelsea internet fans’ forums posted Ovrebo's address and threats against him. On Facebook, several groups were created by this morning dedicated to abusing the referee, including one titled 'Kill Tom Henning Ovrebo'.
Anders Frisk was hounded out of the game

The creator of one group states: 'We group dedicated to the hunt for (and brutal murdering of) the second-leg champions league ref of Chelsea vs Barcelona.'

Mr Ovrebo was pursued into the players’ tunnel by Drogba and Ballack with the Ivorian hitting the wall with his fist as abuse was screamed at the official.

The witness said one player shouted: 'Tell the world that UEFA didn’t want Chelsea in the final.' 

Ovrebo, 42, works as a psychologist outside football. In Euro 2008, the Italian Football Federation demanded an apology from UEFA after he controversially ruled out a goal by Luca Toni in Italy’s match against Romania.

Afterwards, Ovrebo admitted he had made a mistake and was not assigned any more tournament matches.


More...

* Chelsea's calamity ref has been ditched by FIFA before - 10 things you didn't know about Norwegian official Ovrebo
* Chelsea 1 Barcelona 1: Blue murder at the Bridge as Iniesta strikes late
* GRAHAM POLL: The referee was wrong, but you can't behave like that...
* CHELSEA FC NEWS FROM ACROSS THE NET